The post quoted excerpts from an Essence.com interview with Lisa Wu-Hartwell’s husband, Ed. In it, he discusses his relationship with Lisa and Keith Sweat’s sons Justin and Jordan:

“Me and my sons have a great relationship. I tell everyone I have three sons. They call me dad; I never say my stepkids, they are my sons.”

But what was even more bizarre than a man claiming another man’s sons was Ed’s response to the question, “Do you have a good relationship with their father, Keith Sweat?”:

Not at all. The reason is because [when I started dating] Lisa there was a lot that I had to stop from happening. I had to lay down the law, man to man. Have I tried to work out some things and put our differences to the side for the sake of the kids? Absolutely. I don’t like to play games.

I don’t know Keith Sweat that well, but I was certain that he didn’t take kindly to Hartwell’s implications that he had to be put in his place. So just to be sure, I reached out to a source close to Sweat’s camp to inquire if Ed Hartwell really did lay down the law to Keith Sweat.

Here’s what the source, who asked not to identified said:

I don’t understand how anybody can call anybody out or put their foot down to the custodial parent who has all the rights! What would he give a basis to lay down the law based on? How does Keith respond to that? Ed Hartwell has no rights over Keith’s kids. None! Zero! He has no merit. [Hartwell] gets to see the kids because he happens to be married to Keith’s ex-wife.

Here is Keith’s statement: Keith is raising his kids to be normal, well-adjusted young men. He is busy raising his children 24/7. He is totally responsible for all aspects of his kids’ lives: education, health, welfare, insurance, college education. He chooses the clothes, he chooses where they vacation. He drops them off and picks them up from school every day. The courts gave him unilateral rights regarding his children. They didn’t give anybody else rights. If Lisa wants to take the boys out of Atlanta, she has to get permission from Keith. She picks them up on the 1st and the 3rd weekend of every month. Those are her rights. Ed has NO rights.

In this situation, Keith is going to be the bigger person. Keith has the fastest growing syndicated radio show now in 42 markets. He has two television shows coming out. He performs in concerts. What is Ed doing? I hear him and Lisa say he played in the NFL for 7 years. Is that factually correct? He played for the Falcons for three years and he was cut from there, cut from Cincinnati, cut from Oakland. He was injured for three years. So did he play for seven years? Keith has been in the business for 21 years, but he’s been singing since he was a little boy. Keith doesn’t try to inflate his career or himself.

My source reminded me of our last conversation when he told me that if the show lasted long enough, we would see the real Lisa Wu come out. Apparently, it is rumored that Lisa strikes Kim either on camera or on the set of the Reunion show which airs on Nov. 25. “You’re seeing the real Lisa [on the Reunion show],” he said.

He indicated that Keith is sympathetic to Lisa despite the fact that Lisa and Hartwell can’t keep Keith Sweat’s name out of their mouths. “Keith is not going to get in the gutter with them,” said the source. “Keith is actually trying to save her as the mother of his kids. Because his kids will be affected by all of this.” According to the insider, he has never seen Lisa Wu do drugs, and he could see why an accusation of that sort might make Lisa upset enough to go after Kim.

Although the source didn’t indicate this, Lisa’s violent tendencies might be part of the reason why she lost custody of her sons to Sweat. “Lisa does not handle very well any kind of criticism,” said the source. “Lisa has made these statements about flipping over sofas and beating people up. We really don’t have to say or do anything at this point. Lisa is Lisa. The facts speak for themselves.”

“But what was even more bizarre than a man claiming another man’s sons was Ed’s response to the question. . .”

Why is another man claiming another man’s child bizarre? My father abandoned my older sister and I, my step father stepped up to the plate and took care of up like his own. Ain’t nothin bizarre about that, that’s being a compassionate, loving REAL MAN!!!

wow…that pretty sums everything up. I think that Ed should be respectful of the situation, whatever it may be, and just keep his trap shut. Obviously he has no credibility right now, being dropped from every team that he was associated with. And Lisa needs to quit with the ‘holier than thou’ attitude because she basically was the s**t stirrer, relaying the song that Nene sang back to Kim. However, I must admit, I love the drama, scripted or not, it definitely is fun to watch people making a fool out of themselves. On a side note, why the hell does Sheree think that she is so beautiful? I swear all I see when I look at her is a man in the middle of a sex change…I’m not trying to be cruel but she is quite unattractive to me and I do agree with Kim that they look alike, they both have noses that cover their entire faces and both look like pre op sex changers…ok now im finished.

It takes alot for a woman to lose custody of her kids. Also I can’t see Lisa wanting/allowing her sons to call Ed dad. They have a dad. If Ed calls them my sons or my stepkids is not really an issue. Their real dad is alive and taking care of them.

Uh what is bizarre is that the he is trying to call out the real Dad. Obviously Lisa not having any custody of the kids means something! So if Lisa doesn’t have right to the kids what makes Ed think he has a right to say anything.

Wouldn’t surprise me if Lisa was humping around with Ed causing their divorce.

Hermosa, you’re taking it out of context. It’s bizarre when a man claims another man’s child when the father is still very much in the picture and doing what he needs to. Your circumstance is totally different.

Good mornin” everyone
I agree with you Hermosa. It takes a REAL man to step up and take care of another man’s kids. Not to say Keith isn’t doing his part, but what is wrong with what Ed said ? I think it is great that him and the boys have a great relationship and it is SOOOO obvious that the “source” is a friend of Keith’s.

“But what was even more bizarre than a man claiming another man’s sons was Ed’s response to the question. . .”

I’m a little upset about this comment too Hermosa. My husband cares for my daughter as if she were his – she calls him dad.
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If the biological dad is in the picture no woman is going to allow their child to call another man dad. My kids call my husband either by his first name or “pops.

Keith Sweat is the custodial parent meaning HE is the one completely taking care of HIS kids. NO Lisa! She is not buying clothes, taking them to school. So WHY should Ed be called Dad especially when the mother doesn’t even have any custody. Obviously the courts must found her unfit because I hardly ever hear about dad’s getting custody

I agree to some extant, but things change when there is more than your children involved. My mom had 2 kids with my step father and she made it a point to never make me and my older sister feel like the black sheep of the fam. So did my step father, she doesn’t see us like step we are his own.

My point is, you want all your children to feel equally loved and if both parents and step can make it work, then why not? Even if it include calling your step daddy or mommy.

because if I am the biological father and raise the kids on my own along doing the providing for their entire life. Who is this clown, trying to lay down the law when in fact his wife doesn’t even have the custody of the kids. What does give him the right to put himself on the same level with the father that is doing everything when they don’t even have the kids? That is disrespect in my eyes. I be damned if I have some clown ass, talking ish when they don’t even raise any of my kids.

@ Hermosa, you are absolutley correct. I see where you are coming from, HOWEVER….it looks to me like Ed Hartwell has no respect for their particular situation talking about PUTTING HIS FOOT down when it came to the Biological father of the kids he so fondly refers to as his sons…Like he’s running things??.HE is clearly NOT trying to make this situation work!

And from what I read, it didn’t seem like he was trying to take credit from Keith. It just seemed like he wanted to put all the kids on the same pedestal, no one is better or more loved than the other!

I agree to some extant, but things change when there is more than your children involved. My mom had 2 kids with my step father and she made it a point to never make me and my older sister feel like the black sheep of the fam. So did my step father, she doesn’t see us like step we are his own.

My point is, you want all your children to feel equally loved and if both parents and step can make it work, then why not? Even if it include calling your step daddy or mommy.
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If a biological is not in the picture it makes perfect sense. My mom also had 2 kids met my dad and they had me and 2 other siblings. My first two siblings only know our dad as dad. Their fathers were not in the picture.

Another thing, Keith Sweat said no to exposing his kids to reality Television when Lisa wanted them to be a part of it. Based on this article and this discussion…I could be wrong, but I think Keith Made the right decision and NOT lisa….all about judgment

Ed is simply saying he loves the boys as his own and he calls them his sons. What the hell is wrong with that? I don’t like the whole step-kids. Paternity is a very sensitive subject and their are always two sides to every story. Need to look at Wil, Jada and their situation.

I just saw Keith in March. We were hanging out back stage w/ another performer from that show when he announced that he had some stuff and did anybody want to share it with him? I’m not referring to the “sticky icky” either. So no one can throw stones about drug use.

Who knows what really goes on in these situations.

I do know that when your shty is this messy, it’s best to keep it off national tv.

Yo Ed .. here’s a suggestion .. why don’t u do like all the other Ball Players who have fallen by the way side .. start an organization for at risk kids .. if that dosen’t work out .. you can be a bouncer at majic city .. or better yet a personal trainer..

I see both sides of the coin. I agree that if your biological father is in your life and is taking care of you like he is supposed to then it is a slap in the face (see Al B. Sure and Quincy for reference). But if your dad is not handling his business and your step dad steps to the plate then it is only natural to have that bond and their is nothing wrong with that. One of my friends step dad has been in her and her brother’s life since they were toddlers while her real dad ran a mini crime spree and did bids in prison and it was YEARS later did I know he was not her biological dad because the bond was so there and he stepped up to the plate.

When he spoke about “putting his foot down”, I thought he was referring to Keith and Lisa’s relationship. Nothing to do with the kids. I don’t know about them calling him Dad, but I like they way he looks at his wife’s children. As his own, as he should.

@bloggergirlz
Yea it seems obvious that all of that is for Didddy and his image. I mean how else was he going to get on my super sweet 16 ! Lol ! It’s cool that they have a bond and he treats him like a son, but sometimes it seems kinda disrespectful to Al on both him and the boys parts ! I mean did you see that episode ! “Stuntin like my daddy”. I would’ve been crushed…

@model: i watched bits and pieces of it…al and i have a mutual friend, so i know the real deal…he wasn’t crushed by it though…that’s why i said that diddy stuff is made for tv…another reason it pisses me off is because of diddy’s daughter chance (but that’s another issue in itself)…

as far as this post is concerned, ed needs to fallback on his comments…whether or not they were misconstrued…

“The reason is because [when I started dating] Lisa there was a lot that I had to stop from happening. I had to lay down the law, man to man.”

sounds like ed laid down the law in regards to how keith sweat was treating lisa; not the boys. i would expect for my current man to “lay down the law” not only to my ex, but to any nucca that is disrespecting me. in that aspect, i’m not mad at ed for defending his woman.

in as much as the kids, i’m siding with hermosa. i highly doubt that kim porter & al b. sure’s son calls puffy, “puffy” the way that we do. he loves and claims that boy as one of his kids, even though al b. is alive and kicking.

the whole “step” title serves as a way to divide families, in my opinion. i have a younger step-brother. but that is my “brother” to anyone that has a question about our relationship. his mom is alive & well, but when i have to go to his school, the parents ask about his “mom,” referring to my mother. imo, all they need to know is that that little boy is being raised in a household with two loving parents; biological or not…he comes from a two-parent, loving household. now, he has his own endearing name for my mother, and that’s fine. but he sure likes to slip up and call her “mommy” when i’m around. my step-father, i refer to him as my second dad. i wasn’t raised with him; hut i know that he loves me tremendously. my bioligical father, whom i call “daddy,” isn’t bothered at all by how i reference my step-father. he’s been around my entire life and isn’t threatened by the relationship between my second dad and me.

family is family…step or not…i’m not mad at ed for loving those boys as his own and ensuring that they feel included as a part of the hartwell home. good for him ♥

Keith probably wasn’t ready to let her go or something.
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can you imagine all of the drawers “keith iwannamakeyou sweat” can get? not just the celeb persona either… not only that he is educated i have met him at a children’s fundraiser banquet once a few years back during ciaa here in raleigh….he is a genuine nice person.

from what i see of her and granted it is on tv…not so much so (nice…). beauty is only skin deep.

@ Pages … I guess its different strokes for different folks. My father wasn’t in my life since I was 2, and when he tried to re-enter a few months ago (I am now 23), I kindly referred to him as his name and my Mom’s husband(my siblings father) is my DAD as far as I know and have been raised to understand.

I think this Ed character is just talking to gain attention, from what we know Keith does everything for those children and there is a reason why Lisa doesn’t have custody so he could GTFOH w/ his comments and man to man BULL. He needs more people.

Also … I don’t think its anything wrong with your partner caring for and loving your child, its actions like Ed’s that become a problem – when they overstep there boundaries.

Katie Holmes stated that Tom’s kids Isabella and Conner call her mom. That too did not sit well with me. My kids friends call me mom that’s fine with me, I am not trying to replace/compare/compete with anyone. If I had a stepchild there is no way I would allow him/her to call me mom, unless their mother was dead and the child chose to call me mom. Other than that it is disrespectful.

This is what Lisa had to say about losing her kids:
“Until this day, I still can’t believe I lost custody because they were convinced that because I was an aspiring actress and Keith was more stable and settled in his career than I was. So because I’m a working mother, that means I’m a bad parent? I still don’t get it.
“It was an unfortunate ruling that was handed to me. It was devastating, and if it can happen to me, it can happen to Mary Poppins, because there was no [behavioral] misconduct on my part. I’ve never done drugs, I don’t party and I helped raise his kids. How do you take my kids when I’m raising yours?”

I dated a few women that had kids and you form your own relationship with them. The kids are part of the package and the baby daddy was before my time, I would expect the female to handle that situation on her own. Unless he is one of those derranged lunis that you have to put your foot up their ass. Either way if he ain’t shyt, she wouldn’t have to worry about dealing with him because we would handle our own. If the Dad has a great relationship with his kids, I respect that and let him be the Dad, but if the kids live with me they will have to follow my rules as being the chief of the household not because I am step Dad. At the end it is about the welfare of the kids and not anybody’s ego.

Naw…I don’t think Ed belongs in there. I agree that I think he was referring to laying down the law in a situation with Keith and Lisa. It is obvious it was a turbulent divorce. Plus if Keith was being disrespectful I applaude him for doing that.

I think Ed was attempting to show that he considers his step children like his own sons, which is a GOOD thing.

AND, I think Ed was stating he had to put Keith in his place about his treatment of Lisa, not in regards to the Keith. I’ve read a lot from Keith Sweat in recent weeks, and while it’s great that he comes across as a good father, I do think he also comes across as being controlling.

Sweat controls the kids education, money, life or whatever the assistant or source said? Great. Nice. Hopefully, the kids see their mom more than just the two weekends a month because that’s IMPORTANT. If they’re mom isn’t a crack whore, which I definitely don’t think she is, then there should be no reason they’re not around their mom and he should WANT her involved in the decisions he makes for THEIR children.

one of my girlfriends a REAL close homie….got her four kids calling some random nucca she got knocked up with baby five with..daddy. and her ex-husband is a really good dad to their kids they got together.he spends time with them, he takes them places, he pays his support and does extra. new dude who been on the scene not even 3 years can’t afford to buy those kids a soda and she got them calling him “DADDY” it made me cringe so much the last time i was at her house…

ed opened his mouf about some kids he ain’t got no rights to. he shoulda just said i love them like they are mine…ain’t gotta be like “i had to lay down the law” even if it WAS about her and NOT the kiddiies (who are beautiful btw) he shoulda been a man and kept it between him and keith….and not put it out on front skreet.

Also … if and when I do marry my boyfriend, I won’t expect my daughter to call my him dad because her father is present in her life.I will expect my husband to treat her no different then he would our kids if we have any because I do believe in maintainig a healthy home and somtimes “titles do cause a divide”. I woudl never force a child to do anything as some parents though.

You can totally lose your kids these days without being a shady mother. There are plenty of mothers that have… It’s just not common. But, there was a period in the 90s were that whole equal opportunity custodial rights was being examined. Most men,just don’t choose to fight for custody. And, some men only seek custody for personal gain.
(Not saying that’s Keith’s case…)

I don’t blame Ed Hartwell for wanting to protect his wife. I don’t blame Keith Sweat for wanting to protect his children, either. But Sandra’s source is going to only look out for Keith Sweat b/c that’s where his loyalty lies (and where his checks come from).

I think it’s great if Ed has the type of relationship that he’s claiming to have with the children, but I don’t know about that “Dad” thing because I just feel that’s something that both parents should agree upon before allowing kids to call a step-mother/father by Mom or Dad! I wonder if Lisa and Ed go out of their way to mend fences with Keith like the way they was portraying to do so with “friends” on the show! How did she lose custody of her boys anyway…you know it’s hard to take kids away from their mother?

sandra, what u mean ‘claiming someone else’s kids as his own.’ now if he half way claimed them, or not at all, we’d be talking about that.

i dont believe he ‘laid down the law’ about keiths kids. i believe he had to lay down the law with keith probably acting an ass now that Lisa’s moving on to another man who was more than capable of supporting her–with or without keith’s checks.

bloggin has got to be hard when people have relationships with these celebrities. if keith were so perfect, she’d be still with him. sure, i thought it was crass of lisa to constantly knock him also, trust me. Ed’s defending his wife’s honor, so keep that in mind. Lisa was a package deal. Ed accepted that.

it’s going to always be a tug of war if they get into this ‘im their daddy, you’re not’ bs. as a man married to the mother of these young men, he’s taking care of them, as any responsible adult would do. we dont know all sides to this story.

i wouldn’t be surprised if KS was giving dude a hard time. it’s what men do since guys actually think “once my sshhitt, always my shhiiitt,” until another nigga swoops in. keith’s probably a great father, but i think we should embrace ed hartwell (i call him juicy booty) treating them as his own sons. That’s double the father figures and positive male influences for those young men.

Well, ….well real journalist have sources they can’t take them either. Thats the biz.

If your give up your sources, your done!!! whether in the news biz or the blogging biz. I took journalism courses….journalist would go to jail to protect there sources. Thats how it it is. You never name your sources….who’s gonna trust you? Who’s gonna wanna talk to you? More than likely a source is someone who shouldn’t be talking anyway….lol You give them up, they lose their job, and anybody else you go to for info won’t even look at you.

until Lisa comes out her mouth and says she lost custody, i dont believe it. who’s to say it wasn’t a mutual and amicable decision to have the father raise HIS sons, now that they’re teenagers????

three sides to every story, trust me. i agree with the few responses; sources should reveal themselves. to hell with all this anonymous bs. when we hear source, we tend to think it’s someone extremely close to the person. hell, i’m a source to my neighbor doing bs and smoking weed on his balcony too, but doesn’t mean i know him.

When you are married to someone who has kids, those babies become your own. How would you feel if you had a man that did not accept your kids as if they were his own. My DH has two children and even though I think his baby mama is a crazy beyatch, I treat those babies like my own.

All of you people that think its disrespectful for Lisa’s sons to refer to Ed as Dad must be nuts. My son has his biological father in his life but he calls my husband “Dad” as well and no one has a problem with this. I’m just grateful that my son has 2 upstanding men in his life when so many black males don’t. When you have children from previous relationships it is always a blessing when someone comes along in your life that loves your kids as much as you.

I understand the use of Unnamed Sources for the purpose of legitimate reporting and for the purpose of protecting someone’s safety, job, or integrity….but when people hide behind being unnamed for the point of spreading false or subjective information, I’m more suspicious.

i didn’t say it was discrepectful .. even tho my step-mother and father were married for over 40 yrs .. i’ve never ever ever called her Mom .. she didn’t want us to and we didn’t .. she was a cold fish and that was cool .. she didn’t raise me so there was no need to give her that due ..

all i said was … Ed is jockeying for air time next season .. watch what Kymmy’s saying to ya … lol

I’m kinda not buying this. I don’t think Ed was referring to the kids when he said he had to lay down the law man to man. He was probably referring to Lisa & Keith’s relationship.
I come from an abusive relationship with my son’s father and he used to treat me and talk to me any kind of way. He felt like just because I have a child with him that he would always be able to have a certain control over me. Well the man that have now does not play that at all. He had to “lay down” some rules to my son’s father as well. He told him that if he could not call me by my proper name that he didn’t need to be talkin to me nor calling his house to argue on the phone with his future wife. He had to explain to him that I am no one’s property and he is not to be disrespectful to me just because I had a child by him. Normally I wouldn’t answer the phone when “baby’s daddy” called just to avoid confrontation but he knows his place now.

@ Always sweet… Same situation here. I have an ex who was controlling and although he moved on and does what he want on his end… he still thought that he could handle me however the choose because we have a child together.

I think he needs a damn job! So what he helps her make jewelry. I think he likes to listen to the gossip. My husband and I have been together for 16 yrs. and he could care less about some gossip with women and Ed was all in the gossip BS.

I’ve always wondered about Lisa Wu. I didn’t think she was as calm as the show mase her seem. Cuz why exactly does she have suck limited rights in aspect of her kids? Why there isn’t any joint custody???

Edddy, sorry dude but Keith will always be way more relevant than you. You’re a nobody football player. I woulda called you a bust but you were a senventh round pick.

well, ed hartwell could get it before keith sweat at the end of the day. man, did yall see dude’s ass on that video he showed? wow. it looked phatter cuz his waist line was smaller in college, but still….he can get it.

keith sweat…hmmm, not so much. i’ll listen to his music and call it a day….

Hermosa Says:
“But what was even more bizarre than a man claiming another man’s sons was Ed’s response to the question. . .”
• Why is another man claiming another man’s child bizarre? My father abandoned my older sister and I, my step father stepped up to the plate and took care of us like his own. Ain’t nothin bizarre about that, that’s being a compassionate, loving REAL MAN!!!
That statement got me heated
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Hermosa, don’t get too heated by his comment because it doesn’t compare to your situation. Keith Sweat hasn’t abandoned his kids so it’s not like another man needs to step in and take care of them. Unlike your statement that you were abandoned… Not the same thing…

Ed played for the Ravens so your source Sandra isnt that credible. Everyone knows that’s how he made a name for himself playing alongside Ray Lewis. Anyone who truly knew Keith Sweat and was speaking on behalf of him would have known more than what was said on the show.